Fishhook disgorger



July W 19511 a. A. LAWRENCE 2 563311 FISHHOOK DISGORGER Filed Feb. 9, 194a INVENTOR. CHARLES A..LAWRENCE- Patented July 17, 1951 OFFICE FISHHOOK DISGORGER Charles A. Lawrence, Saugus, Mass. Application February 9, 1948, Serial No. 7,112

'2 Claims. 1

My invention relates to improvements in fishhook disgorgers and it has for its primary object to improve the construction and enhance the utility thereof.

My improved disgorger comprises a shank provided at its one end with a handle by means of which the instrument is held and manipulated While dislodging and removing a fishhook from a fish, while the opposite end of said shank is provided with a relatively short extension that is obliquely disposed at an obtuse angle relatively to the shank, said extension having its extremity formed with a hook-engaging notch and its top side made with a longitudinal instrument-guiding channel or groove to be occupied by the line while the instrument is in engagement therewith, and said channel or groove being formed interiorly adjacent to said notch with a transverse rib providing a cam surface by which the notched end of the extension is deflected around knots or other enlargements existing in the line.

Other features of the invention are hereinafter pointed out.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a fishhook disgorger constructed in accordance with this invention.

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the disgorger shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a section on line 3-3 of Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a bottom plan view of the line-engaging end portion of the disgorger shown in Figures 1 and 2.

Figure 5 is a section on line 5-5 of Figure 1 viewed in the direction indicated by the arrows and omitting the extension I2 hereinafter described.

Figure 6 is a section on line 6-6 of Figure 1.

Figure '7 illustrates the manner in which the disgorger is manually employed to remove a hook from the mouth of a fish.

The illustrated embodiment of the invention comprises a straight shank IU provided at one end with a handle II that is rigidly fixed to said end and at its opposite end with an extension I2 that is disposed in an upwardly oblique position relatively to the shank ID. This extension may, as shown, be an integral part of an end member I! provided with a straight shank I8 formed at its inner end with a socket within which the proximate end portion of shank I0 is fixedly mounted.

At its outer end the extension I2 is provided with a medial notch I3 which is utilized as presently to be described.

. 2 I j The top side of the extension I2 is formed with a'longitudinal medial groove or channel I4 provided interiorly, and adjacent to said notch, with a'transverse rib I5-providing a cam surface IB immediately adjacent to the notch I3, the top ofsaid-rib being well below the level of the tops of the sides of the groove.

It is a feature of the illustrated structure that a hook-shielding shoulder 23 is provided upon the under side of member I! at the junction of the extension with the shank of which said member forms part.

The handle II is made at one end with a socket within which the proximate end of the shank I!) is fixedly mounted While the top side of said handle is made with a longitudinal row of transverse relatively parallel corrugations I9 against which the fishline 20 (Fig. 7) is clamped by the thumb while the instrument is in use.

At its inner end the handle II is formed with an angular notch which provides an abutment shoulder ZI to be engaged by either the first or second finger of the hand holding the instrument as shown in Fig. 7, thereby to hold the opposite end of the handle forcibly against the palm of the hand, said opposite end being stepped, as shown at 22 in Fig. 1, to provide said end with longitudinally ofi-set shoulders to conform more or less with the shape of the interior of the hand with which it contacts.

Adjacent to the inner end of the handle II the shank ID is provided with a pair of upstanding posts 24, 24, one at each side of the shank, and these posts are shown as the opposite ends of a U-shaped piece of metal wire embracing shank I0 and soldered or otherwise fixed to said shank. When considerable force is required to extract the hook the fishline may be wrapped around these posts before being clamped to the handle by the thumb.

In using the above described disgorger the handle I I is grasped by one hand while the other hand is utilized to draw the fishline taut. Then, while maintaining the line taut, the extension I2 is placed against the line with the latter occupying the groove I 4 and the instrument is slid forwardly on the line until the fishhook enters the notch I3 whereupon the line may be wrapped around the posts 24 and thereafter clamped in position upon the corrugations of the handle II by the thumb (Fig. 7) while the instrument is manipulated to disengage the hook from the mouth of the fish so that it is free to be withdrawn from the latter. As the instrument is slid r on the line toward the hook any knot 25 (Fig. 3),

or other enlargement forming part of the line, is deflected away from the notch I3 without its leaving the groove l4 so that said enlargement does not interfere with the movement of the device on the line nor disengages it therefrom. When the bend of the hook occupies a position Within the notch I3 the point of the hook is shielded by the shoulder 23 as the hook is withdrawn and cannot engage the fish.

What I claim is:

1. A fishhook disgorger comprising a handle; a straight shank rigidly connected at one end with said handle and having its opposite end provided with a relatively short approximately straight longitudinal extension that is obliquely disposed at an obtuse angle relatively to and bee yond said shank, said extension being made at its free end with a hook-engaging notch and 'uponits top side with a longitudinal medial guiding groove to be occupied by the fis'hline while the instrument in engagement with the latter, and said groove being provided immediately adjacent 1 0 S id notch with a. transverse cam surface by which knots and other enlargements existing in said line are deflected laterally away from said .no'tch thereby to prevent interruption in the-movement 4 of the instrument relatively to said fishline through engagement of the notched end of said extension with said knot or other enlargement.

2. A fishhook disgorger according to claim 1 wherein said cam surface is one side of a rib disposed transversely within said groove immediately adjacent to said notch and wherein the top of said rib is disposed substantially below the level of the tops of the opposite sides of the groove. CHARLES A. LAWRENCE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file Of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 253,363 Foard Feb. '7, 1882 375.3173 Rockwell Jan. 3, 1888 400,112 Post Mar. 26, 1889 1,909,775 Buras, -,Jr r. Aug. .15. .1 ll2 9 ,.53.3 N lson T-.- May 2 1.9. 22.05%:1'94 Pfiueger Aug.v 4, 1936 2,205,? 69 Sweetland June 25, 1940 3,4 1 458 Unde wo d 9 M y I 'ZlQfiZQ Ketgland uly 2 943 

